Elevator-guard



Patented Mar. 21,1899.

I No; 621,670.

' F. P.'H|NDS.

ELEVATOR GUARD.

{Application filed Nov. 6, 1897.)

(No Mode "n1: Nunms PETERS co. PHCIYO-LVTHO. wAsnms'ron. n c.

UNITED STATES" PATENT OFFICE.

FRANKLIN P. HINDS, OF BOSTO N, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO J OHN F.

BERTON, OF SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS ELEVATOR-G UARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 621,670, dated March21, 1899.

Application filed November 6, 1897.

T0 to whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANKLIN P. HINDS, of Boston, in the county ofSufiolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Elevator-Guards, which will, in connection with theaccompanying drawings, be hereinafter fully described, and specificallydefined in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a guardembodying my inventionin position as when guarding an elevatorwell. Fig.2 is a central vertical section through a portion of the guard andthrough the hollow iron post or casing to which the guardis pivoted andwhich contains the counteracting devices that regulate the drop of theguard, as shown therein. Fig. 3 is a detail showing in horizontalsection how the vertical slats are pivotally attached orhinged to theupper and under guard-rails so as to'fold compactlywhen the guard israised. Fig.4is arear view of the raised guard and the spring lockingattachment acted upon by the car and the counteractingdevices forregulating the fall of the guard when released by the car. Fig. 5 is asectional detail showing in side View the position of thecounteracting-weight and its connecting-chain when the guard is up andin dotted lines the position of said parts when the guard has begun tofall.

This guard may be constructed with a single bar extending across thepassage to the well or with a plurality, of bars connected by hingedslats, as shown in the drawings, the parts being arranged to foldtogether compactly when the guard is raised.

The features of novelty in this guard consist chiefly in the devicesemployed for causing the guard to automatically drop and restrainingandgraduating its fall by a combination of counteracting-weights and anadjustable pneumatic device, the weights first acting independently andthen together with thepneumatic device in regulating the fall of theguard. These and other novel features are hereinafter fully described,and pointed out in the claims.

Fig. 1 illustrates what is sometimes termed a half-automatic guardthatis, it is raised by hand and held locked in that position by through thecenter of said yoke.

the presence of the car at the guarded pas- $erial in. 657,603. (tomodel.)

resents one side of a doorway opening into an elevator-well andaffording access at that point to the car which moves up and downtherein; B, the hollow iron post or casing bolted to side A andcontaining the devices which restrain and regulate, as before stated,the fall of the pivoted gate or guard; O, the guard, which may comprisea single bar or an additional lower bar 0, connected with O by hingedslats 0 C The guard G is pivoted to post B at D, forming a lever, with Das its fulcrum, the long arm of which extends across the passage-wayleading to the elevator, while its short arm is attached by a chain E toa rod F, carrying a number of weights G, strung thereon, while rod F isattached to a yoke H, with a limited freedom of play vertically The.yoke H is secured, through straps I I, to the movable cylinder J. Afixed tubular piston K, attached to a cross-bar K, attached to post B,carries a valve L on its lower end, which is fitted to operate closelyin the movable cylin der, so as to produce pneumatically a counteractingrestraint upon and regulation of the falling guard, but to oifer nopractical resistance to the raising of the guard, which is done by hand,while the fall is by gravity and automatically regulated, as stated. Theguard is self-closing at all times, and, except when raised by hand tothe position indicated in Fig. 4 and locked in that position by the caracting on devices to be explained, it automatically assumes the guardingposition. (Shown in Fig. 1.) When the guard is raised by hand, asstated, to open the passage-way to the well and to the platform of thecar, a projecting spring N, Fig. 4:, is arranged to come within thepathof and to be acted upon by the car, so as to cause its upper end,which passes through a loop P on the back of a locking-bar Q, looselysupported on a stud R in the post, to press the upper and bent end ofthe bar through an opening in post B into a notch S in the inner end ofbar 0, thereby locking the bar in that position until the car moves upor down, and thus releases spring N, when the latter will react by itselastic force, withdraw the locking-bar from notch S, and release thebar 0, which will then be started on itsvdownward movement by the stressof weight Gr,suspended thereon, as indicated in Fig. 5. In this figureit will be seen that the chain E in passing from guard O to theweightrod F draws over a central pulley or roll M and under a roll M,which turn on studs fixed in a block attached to the interior of thepost B and in such a manner that the weights G, suspended on the chain,tend to cause the guard when released tostart on its downward movement,and when it has proceeded about one-eighth of its descent, as indicatedby the dotted lines in said Fig. 5, the chain is then caused thereby todraw more nearly vertical and around a roll M also turning on a studfixed in the said post block, and by such changed direction counteractsthe movement downward of the guard and alone restrains its fall untilthe free play of rod F in yoke 11 hasreached its upward limit, when thepneumatic device is brought into action by the falling guard, which thendraws upon the yoke and raises the cylinder J against the pressure ofthe air between valve L and the bottom of the cylinder, and thusreinforces the counteracting-weights and exerts more restraint upon theguard. Avent may be made in the movable cylinder at J and is adjustableby means of a suitable screw-plug threadedtherein, as is common inpneumatic door-checks, which screw-plug may be accessible for purposesof adjustment with a screw-driver through a hole J 2 in the post, asshown in Fig. 2.

The practical operation of the guard is as follows: When the car is at adoorway to be used, it bears against the spring-arm N, and

thereby presses the locking-bar Q so that its upper offset end bearsagainst theside of the short arm of the guard-lever C. The operatorthrows up the bar or guard, and when it is in its vertical position thelocking-bar Q enters the notch S in the guard and secures it in thatposition. When the car is moved away from the door in either direction,it releases the spring-arm N, which then by its reaction withdraws bar Qfrom notch S, and

thus releases the guard. The chain E at this time is so connected withthe short arm of the pivoted guard that the weight G, suspendedthereon,pulls the guard forward and starts it on its fall, and when ithas reached about the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5 thechain will have passed inward, so as to draw against the descendingmovement of the guard and will so counteract the guard alone until thenut on the lower end of the weightrod is brought to bear against theunder side of yoke H. To this point the weights have been adjusted tocounteract alone the movement of the guard and prevent its too suddenand forceful fall, but are not sufficient to restrain the increasingforce of the falling guard. Hence the pneumatic device which, beingproperly adjusted to the requirements of the guard, now comes into playand, cooperating with the weights, assists in regulating and checkingthe downward movement of the guard to a nicety, insuring its promptdescent, but without such force and violence as to either damage theguard itself or injure any object or person that it might encounter inits fall and avoiding the jar and noise which usually accompanies thedropping of such guards and increases the wear and tear of the same.

I claim- 1. An elevator-guard composed of a pivoted bar the long arm ofwhich extends across and guards the passage to the elevator-well,counteracting-weights incased at the side of the opening into the welland connected with the short arm of the said bar; and a pneumatic checkconstructed, and arranged in said case,

so as to cooperate with said weights in regulating the fall of the barsubstantially as specified.

2. An elevator-guard composed of a pivoted bar the long arm of whichextends across and guards the passage to'the elevator-well,counteracting-weights incased at the side of the opening into the welland connected with the short arm of the said bar; a lower bar pivoted tothe post or side casing and connected with the upper bar by hinged slatsarranged to fold between the two bars when the guard is raised; and apneumatic check constructed, and arranged in said case, so as tocooperate with said weights in regulating the fall of the guardsubstantially as specified.

3. An elevator-guard comprising the combination of the guard O, pivotedas at D, to a side post or case B; a counterweight G, connected with theshort arm of guard C, by a chain passed between guide-rolls, soas firstto cause the guard to fall and then to restrain its fall; and acooperating pneumatic device composed of a yoke H, the weight-carryingrod F, connected with and arranged to play freely in said yoke; sidestraps I extending from the yoke to a cylinder J, and attached thereto;the cross-bar K and the hollow stationarypiston attached thereto andhaving valve L; the cylinder J, arranged to be moved up and down on saidhollow stationary piston K, and all operating together substantially asand for the purpose specified.

Signed at Boston, Massachusetts, September 18, 1897.

FRANKLIN P. IIINDS. Witnesses:

EUGENE HUMPHREY, R. W. E. HOPPER.

